Jhanvi Desai, clinical assistant professor in the Department of Community and Preventive Dentistry, and Dan Caplan, professor in the Department of Community and Preventive Dentistry, received a $10,000 grant from the Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation to support a one-year pilot project that aims to increase awareness among students and communities across Iowa of various dental service models and career opportunities in underserved or remote areas in Iowa.
With the help of this grant, Desai and Caplan hope that students become more aware of dentistry-related career opportunities, and that this, in turn, results in more students pursuing dental careers in target areas.
"With the help of this grant, oral health care can be delivered to more patients, not only temporarily but potentially also on a longer-term basis, which would benefit Iowa communities," Desai and Caplan said.